Abilities
Abilities are a (somewhat unexplained) phenomenon where an individual manifests a supernatural effect on the world around him. It seems to be somewhat genetic, as ability users who marry ability users almost certainly have children with high potential. However, there are rare occurrences of abilities spontaneously developing in people. Scientists believe that these cases may be a clue to where abilities come from. An Ability is representative of someone's identity. If they are unsure of who they are and have a large internal conflict, their ability will represent that conflict. On the other hand, if a person is certain of their purpose in life, their ability will evolve to Tier 2 to encompass that new identity. The Ability is directly tied to them symbolically, whether they like it or not. Details The ability itself seems to be only related to the user's drive and personal identity. For example, a father with a Combustion ability and a mother with a Force ability, both destructive abilities, can give birth to a child with a defensive, mentally shielding ability. Abilities are inactive until awakened by physical contact from another Ability user. The actual magnitude and scale of an ability depends on the individual. The deeper a person's resolve, the more powerful the ability. The absolute confirmation of someone's dedication to fighting for a particular reason, and them moving past the largest struggle of their life (at least in the story) can cause someone's ability to evolve so as to "Tell their story." The "Tier 2" ability is somewhat rare, and usually quite specialized. However, the power of a Tier 2 ability is immense. It is said that if two Tier 2 abilities were to clash, it would come down to whether one of them counters the other completely. Finally. as you use your ability to alter reality more, your own understanding of reality gets warped. Because of this, prolonged battle can cause one to be heavily influenced by Eldritch's auras. Traits Two attributes define the trait of the ability: range and magnitude. Range is the number of targets or zones affected by the ability. The lowest would be single-target, either the self or an individual, and the highest would be extremely dispersed, meaning that the ability manifests in a large zone or is capable of affecting multiple individuals. In general, single-target is the easiest for humans to accomplish as it suits the style of mental processing characteristic of human brains, not to mention the stress of manifesting a large zone is immense on the mind. Magnitude is the intensity of the effect. It is slightly more abstract and generally cannot be quantified on any universal, objective scale. Nonetheless, it should be apparent when an ability strongly affects reality versus when an ability only holds some sway on the natural laws. High magnitude abilities require immense concentration and skill, but cannot be manifested alongside high dispersion due to the physical limits of the body and mind. As a rule of thumb, an ability cannot be both high range and high magnitude. Generally, it specializes in one or is balanced in both. Types Offensive vs Defensive Active vs Passive Passive Defense (Seeker): targets Allies and supports their survival; protecting from Aura, recovering stamina, physical wounds, utility Active Defense (Keeper): targets Eldritch attacks and mitigates negative effects on Allies Passive Offense (Disruptor): target Eldritch defense and search/erode until weakness appears Active Offense (Vindicator): target Eldritch and go for the kill Majority of people are in Passive or Defense by nature. Few are true offensives, and a Vindicator is respected, but understood to be the least desired job because they have to be the ones to get the closest. Are also prone to being the most prideful, but majority of V's understand that without their allies, they can't even get close and would fall immediately from the aura. Lines of Battle Rear: Passive Defense Tactical Zone (our side): Active Defense Tactical Zone (enemy side): Passive Offense Enemy Position: Active Offense Most teams will have a high concentration of Passives, less Actives, and more defense than offense. This is good because we want to maximize survival rates of our teams, so we send in a larger ratio of Seekers, Keepers, and Disruptors to Vindicators to help ensure that the worst of the Eld attacks never fully manifest or go through our stacked defenses, minimizing mental damage to everybody so we all last longer. In reality, we only need one Vindicator, but having two is good for backup or if one is hardcountered. This is the reason why field agents are almost NEVER to work solo, because you will be missing the defensive luxury from a team, making you HIGHLY vulnerable. Even Elites are very vulnerable individually, and precisely because they are effective at their abilities and synergy, a team of Elites is very strong. Note that in the middle of battle, it is impossible to avoid the Eldritch's Insanity Aura, meaning that with every passing second you take infinitesimal amounts of damage. Thus, it is often preferable to end the battle as quickly as possible rather than let your mental and physical health erode away.